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The company was founded in 1999 and has burnt through more than $100 million since then. It was bought by California-based Craig Wireless for US$5 million in 2011. In August 2015 it sold its fixed line network of 9,000 customers to rival broadband operator, Slingshot.

In April, Craig Wireless sold a 70 megahertz block of 2.3 gigahertz spectrum to Spark New Zealand for $9 million, which left Woosh with two other spectrum management rights.

Auckland-based KordaMentha have been appointed administrators, and partner Neale Jackson said the company had been in difficulty for a while.

"Woosh hasn't been trading profitably for some time and there have been some service issues for its 2,000 customers," Jackson said. "We are also mindful of the customers who rely on Woosh Wireless for their landline and broadband services, particularly those in remote parts of New Zealand".

Woosh is heavily used in rural parts of Southland. A first meeting of creditors is scheduled for June 7.